T-Mobile Continues 600 MHz Push

Bellevue, WA (September 11, 2018)—T-Mobile is continuing to lay the foundation for nationwide 5G in 2020 with 5G-ready equipment and has just announced that it has now lit up 600 MHz (Band 71) Extended Range LTE in 1,254 cities and towns in 36 states, including the island of Puerto Rico.

As T-Mobile rolls out its Band 71 infrastructure, licensed and unlicensed wireless audio equipment operators must vacate frequency spectrum in the 600 MHz band in the relevant regions. Failure to do so may result in a hefty fine.

T-Mobile’s notes that Extended Range LTE signals travel twice as far from the tower and are four times better in buildings than mid-band LTE, providing increased coverage and capacity. The so-called Un-carrier has already deployed Extended Range LTE to more than 80 percent of Americans with 700 MHz (Band 12), and rapidly began deploying it with 600 MHz (Band 71) last year to expand coverage and capacity even further.

In April 2017, T-Mobile made its largest network investment ever, tripling its low-band spectrum holdings by purchasing spectrum sold in the US government’s 600 MHz auction. Those licenses cover 100 percent of the US, including Puerto Rico. Immediately after receiving the licenses, T-Mobile began its rapid 600 MHz Extended Range LTE rollout. To accelerate the process of freeing up the spectrum for LTE, T-Mobile has been working with broadcasters occupying 600 MHz spectrum to assist them in moving to new frequencies.

T-Mobile currently offers 14 smartphones capable of operating in the 600 MHz band, and that number continues to grow. The company has also enabled carrier aggregation for 600 MHz Extended Range LTE and mid-band LTE, so customers with capable devices can access the capacity of both at the same time, increasing download speeds.